WEIGHT/SIZE

I haven't had him weighed since his previous update due to the clinic being closed over Christmas, but I believe him to be over a stone now; he was only a couple of oz off before Christmas so he's got to be there now. In clothes, he's wearing both 3-6 months and 6-9 months depending on where they're from. It won't be long before he's out of 3-6 months clothes though. *sobs*

FOOD

Still the boob!! I love breastfeeding (a little too much, I'm scared to think what I'll do when I can't nurse to sleep, ahh) and I believe strongly J's getting everything he currently needs from me. I've had a few people ask about weaning, but we won't be starting until 6 months at the earliest. The one issue we do have is that my Mum will be looking after him soon for the day and I'm crap at expressing! We're considering mixing breast and formula if I can't pump enough, but once we start weaning hopefully we won't have a problem as he can eat as well as have boob.

TEETHING

Wow, this one has been a tough month for teething; Jesse is regularly desperately trying to bite down on something/anything to relieve the pain and thankfully, we've had matchstick monkey to help! He's really easy for J to hold and the bumps on the back of his head seem to really ease the pain. He's also a teething gel applicator which is really handy when you're trying to get right to the back of little one's gums without them chomping your finger off.

LOOKS

He's just so cute! Am I biased? His eyes aren't a dark brown like A's, but a hazel colour up close, and they're big & round, I love taking pictures of his eyes. He's got cradle cap in the past month which makes his hair appear quite light on top but it's still really dark around the back and he is a chunk (well, not technically as he's in between the 9th and 25th percentile) with big squidgy thighs. I just love babies and I look at him and think how could I not have another one of you ever again!

SLEEP

Jesse would sleep 8:45pm - 2 or 3am and then wake every 2-3 hours after that which was perfect as I'm more than happy with at least one long stretch but we've had a rough 4-5 weeks now where he stopped doing that long stretch and has been awake every 1-2 hours almost every night give or take a few. It really hasn't felt that bad bar a few nights where Archie would wake too, as I would pop him in with us or on the boob and he'd settle fairly quickly but the last couple of nights, our old routine seems to be returning (yay!); though Jesse is teething quite badly and has episodes of being very upset during the evenings, last night he slept 8:30pm - 3:30am and then only woke once after that, which is incredible after the past month.

I remember being so affected by every change that Archie had when it came to sleep and constantly trying to figure out why he'd stopped sleeping well or why he'd started again and this time I'm so much more relaxed and it's lovely to just know that that's what babies do; they have good nights and bad (same with naptime) and it can be or isn't due to any factors at all. That thought alone has made any sleep deprivation much easier than I would've taken it with Archie.

In regards to naps, he'll sleep in the pram/car or in my wrap and recently I've been able to put him back in his PurFlo bassinet and pop the vibrate on his soothing centre and he goes right back off. Sometimes he'll nap for 20-30 minutes, sometimes he'll do a good hour or two. With Archie, I'd be in a rush to pick him up once I saw or heard him wake but with Jesse, when he stirs, I can pop the vibrate back on and he'll usually go straight back off without fully waking. So far, being a second-time parent feels so much simpler, it's lovely to feel more relaxed and it really does seem to make for a more content baby.

DEVELOPMENT

Keep rolling, rolling, rolling, rolling. He rolled, well, he's rolled before at a few weeks but I imagine that was fluke as he hasn't done it since until this month where he's loving a good roly-poly. He loves tummy time, but rolls onto his back every time he pushes one arm higher than the other and has rolled back-to-belly a couple of times too. He tries so hard to crawl, bless him, but forgets to move his arms from underneath him so ends up pushing his head across the floor with his back legs.

MOOD

He already has such a different temperament to Archie; he's very happy to sit and observe Archie playing (he loves watching the trains run around his wooden tracks) and it's funny seeing how he expresses excitement by pulling a funny expression and kicking out his arms & legs.

SIBLINGS

It's nice that Jesse has become so much more robust recently as it means we don't have to worry quite so much when A gets a bit rambunctious with him. He's always giving him kisses and cuddles and wants to pick him up and asks for him and I love that he always says where's Jesse Blue? but I also already see some brotherly irritation where if J's getting more attention, he gives him a slight gentle tap on the leg or gets a little jealous. The great thing is, Jesse is completely mesmerised by Archie and watches his every move but also tends to get upset when A has a shouting episode.

THINGS I DON'T WANT TO FORGET

The fact that he can't move anywhere! Ok, he can roll, but he won't get more than 30cm away from where he began at the moment and I love that I can sit him on my lap and he'll watch me write (he's actually doing that right now) without wanting to constantly get into everything. I'm more than aware that in a few months he could be sitting, crawling and even standing up so I'm soaking in the beauty of a stationary child!